The present invention relates to electron multipliers and more particularly to electron optics for controlling the output of said multipliers.
Recently, cathodoluminescent flat panel image display devices have been suggested utilizing a plurality of electron multipliers as sources for the electron beams of the display device. A device of this type is shown in copending U.S. Patent application Ser. No. 709,411 entitled "Apparatus and Method for Modulating a Flat Panel Display Device" filed on July 28, 1976 by J. A. Rajchman, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,051,468 issued Sept. 27, 1977. In these display devices, electrons emitted from one of several cathode stripes on the rear panel of the display are multiplied so as to form an electron beam by an electron multiplier. The cathode stripes address a given line of the display. The output of the electron multiplier is then modulated, focused and accelerated toward a cathodoluminescent screen on the interior of a front wall parallel to the rear wall. These devices use a separate electron multiplier for each picture element on a display line thus requiring a large number of electron multipliers, approximately 1800 for a conventional NTSC television display device.